Two years after being rescued from deplorable conditions in a Bexar County backyard, three San Antonio siblings are getting a second shot at life, thanks to their new forever family.
Josiah and Naomi were just 3 and 4 years old when they were found chained up in the backyard of a Bexar County home in 2016 after their mom left them in the care of two friends while she was out of town, local station KSAT reported. The kids had dog collars strapped around their wrists and ankles and were surrounded by their own waste.
It was a neighbor who heard them crying and contacted police.
Josiah and Naomi are now celebrating finding their forever family after being adopted by local couple Lakenya and Allen Shaw. The couple also adopted the siblings’ 18-month-old brother Matthew, according to the news station.
“They aren’t the same kids when they first came into the system, but I think it’s owed to the people that have prayed to see these beautiful kids. Ain’t they beautiful? Absolutely,” said Lakenya Shaw.
Allen Shaw, who celebrated his birthday the same day a judge finalized the adoption, called the experience “amazing.”
“I just really am honored to be able to do this for these children, to give them a safe place where they know they can lay their heads down and not worry about having the problems that they had before,” he said at the adoption ceremony.
Neighbors Danny and Theresa Nealy, who know the Shaws from church, have fostered over 100 children and expressed excitement at the news that their friends had finally adopted.
” … They are living the best life they ever lived,” Danny Nealy said of Josiah, Naomi and Mathew. “I’m just glad they’re able to be here and enjoy a moment like this and be on the mic, and people celebrate them.”
Naomi said she looked forward to moving into her new home.
“I like my house, and I like my new bedroom with my mom by me,” she told KSAT.
The people who were supposed to be looking after the children are now behind bars.
